1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to dispensing equipment and, more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to a system for generating, transporting, and dispensing of ice without exposure to external contaminants.
2. Description of the Related Art
Prior to being dispensed to a consumer, ice is often subjected to a variety of potentially unfavorable and even unhealthy conditions. In a store, for example, ice is typically sold in bags or provided as a condiment for consumption with beverages sold at that store.
To accommodate these consumer needs, ice is provided for consumption via an dispenser system, an ice company, and/or an ice bagger unit. In particular, it is common in the beverage industry to incorporate an ice bin with a beverage dispenser system to provide a supply of ice to the consumer. Thus, ice for a beverage can either be accessed directly from the storage bin or from an ice dispenser in engagement with the storage bin.
An ice company provides individual bags of ice at the store to consumers, or alternatively, an ice bagger unit supplies individual bags of ice to consumers. The ice bagger unit includes a hopper for feeding ice into individual bags. The ice bagger unit for storing individual bags of ice until accessed by consumers also includes a holding bin or "merchandiser".
Unfortunately, ice companies are often expensive and less than reliable in supplying individual bags of ice, and, for dispenser systems and ice bagger units alike, there currently exists no satisfactory means by which to transfer large quantities of ice from an ice making system to the ice bin and the hopper, respectively, without exposure to a variety of potentially unfavorable and even unhealthy conditions. Providing a continuous supply of ice has long been problematic, especially if an dispenser system or an ice bagger unit is exposed to large volumes of consumers as well as impurities and contaminants associated with ice. To satisfy the large demand for ice, these systems currently feature either automatic icemakers of limited capacity or require manual replenishment by an attendant from a large-capacity ice making system.
Often, ice within the ice bin or an attendant placing ice directly therein via a bucket replenishes the hopper. In addition to being tedious and labor intensive, manual ice replenishment, however, is less than sanitary due to ice contact with the atmosphere, the bucket, and even the attendant. Manual ice replenishment is also hazardous in that consumers and beverage dispenser attendants alike trip and fall on ice that lands on the floor during the replenishment process.
Current dispenser system and ice bagger unit design only partially address this issue of sanitary transport of large volumes of ice. As such, some ice beverage dispenser systems and ice bagger units include sanitizing systems for dispensing a sanitizing solution to disinfect the dispenser system and the ice bagger unit. However, there is no sanitary means by which to transfer ice from an ice making system to an dispenser and an ice bagger unit without unwanted environmental or human exposure.
Accordingly, there is a long felt need for a system for generating, transporting, and dispensing large quantities of ice without exposure to external contaminants.